Prime Minister Kim Min-seok met with China State Council Premier Li Qiang on the 23rd and said, "Korea and China should pursue a higher level of exchanges in politics, the economy, culture, and youth exchanges."
Kim, who is visiting China, held a Korea-China prime ministerial meeting at Bangchudao Hotel in Dalian on the afternoon of the day and made these remarks, a Prime Minister's Office official said. Kim said, "I think the meeting will serve as an opportunity for the bilateral strategic cooperative partnership to be increasingly solidified at a new stage."
Kim said, "It would be good if China could play a positive role so that conditions can be created for inter-Korean dialogue and North Korea-U.S. dialogue," and asked, "Recently, President Xi Jinping visited North Korea and has good relations with North Korea, and it would be good if China's leadership, including President Xi, could play a role on the Korean Peninsula issue."
In response, Premier Li expressed agreement with Kim's overall remarks, including the need for China's role, the Prime Minister's Office official said.
Through opening remarks, Li stressed, "The Chinese side, together with the Korean side, is willing to continue expanding the breadth and depth of cooperation with utmost sincerity by enhancing mutual trust in accordance with the strategic guidance of the two countries' leaders," adding, "Through this, we want to develop the China-Korea strategic cooperative partnership positively and stably and also achieve regional prosperity and stability."
The two sides also agreed to actively respond to "fake news" that fosters negative perceptions among the other side's public. Kim briefed Li that the visa-free policy for Chinese tourists, initially scheduled to run until the end of this month, has been extended until the end of December.
In addition, following last year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, where the Korea-China summit was held, they agreed to use the APEC event in Shenzhen this Nov. as another opportunity for high-level exchanges, the Prime Minister's Office official said. Regarding this meeting, the official said, "The No. 2 in the hierarchy of both countries met, fully discussed the agreements reached between the leaders and the core content, and significantly deepened their understanding of each other."